The compatibility checker might insist that you can't upgrade your Windows 10 PC to Windows 11, but there are indeed documented ways to bypass those restrictions. You just have to jump through a few technical hoops.
For PCs originally designed for Windows 10, you need to make one small registry edit and then ensure that your PC is configured to use Secure Boot with the Trusted Platform Module (TPM) enabled. Even an old TPM 1.2 chip will do. As many readers have confirmed via email, this process works seamlessly as long as you've got those configuration details set properly. This option will work even with PCs that are 10 years old.
For older PCs that were originally designed for Windows 7 or Windows 8.1, you might need to use a third-party tool called Rufus to bypass installation challenges. That's especially true on PCs that use a legacy BIOS instead of UEFI firmware and for those that don't have access to a TPM. Make sure you have the most recent version of Rufus (4.7 or later) to ensure that you can work around Microsoft's latest compatibility checks.
Those workarounds can't save a device whose CPU lacks support for two specific instruction sets -- POPCNT and SSE 4.2. Most PCs built using Intel CPUs from 2009 or later will pass this test; AMD CPUs from 2015 or later should also be OK.
If you do use one of these upgrade hacks, don't be alarmed by the threatening message you might see when trying to do an unsupported upgrade: "If you proceed with installing Windows 11, your PC will no longer be supported and won't be entitled to receive updates. Damages to your PC due to lack of compatibility aren't covered under the manufacturer warranty."
That's deliberately misleading language from Microsoft. As I've noted before, that warning doesn't really say that Microsoft is going to cut off your access to updates; it simply says your PC is no longer supported, and you're no longer "entitled" to those updates. That word is a tell on Microsoft's part, disclaiming legal responsibility without actually saying what it will do.
If you don't want to mess with the registry and you're willing to do a clean install, just use Rufus to create a bootable Windows 11 installation drive, which bypasses the compatibility checker completely. You'll need to restore your data files from a backup or from the cloud, and you'll also need to install your software from scratch, but that's no more difficult than setting up a new PC.
Via Techsupport | Rufus: Create bootable USB drives the easy way, Website and
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